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Monday, 5 September 2016

15 Tips for Writing Short Romance


with Marilyn Forsyth
Image courtesy of Giphy
I wish I could remember where I read ‘Get in, get out, make every word count’ because it perfectly encapsulates what a short-story writer must aim for. Stories of 3000 words or less are increasingly popular among romance readers with limited time to indulge their passion.

Image courtesy of Giphy
But if you’re an author interested in writing short stories, be warned: their simplicity might make them appear easy to write but, trust me, they’re not! Prior to deciding to concentrate on single title romances I sold more than a dozen short stories to magazines, but I also had many rejections.The following suggestions are based on my experience.


1. DO keep to 2 main characters, maximum 4. The fewer, the better; there simply isn’t time to develop minor characters. And make sure those 2 main characters are sympathetic and believable.

2. DO draw the reader in quickly. Begin in a moment of conflict or emotional upheaval that will steer your protagonist down a particular path.

3. DO provide all the information needed to grasp the who, what, when and where of your story in the first few paragraphs. Ground your reader by establishing a recognisable setting then make it clear who your protagonist is, what she wants and why she wants it, while at the same time providing questions the reader must find the answers to by reading the story.

Not a good place to start! Image courtesy of Giphy


4. DO have your story take place over a short time span-hours or days work best, years are a no-no.





5. DO make it emotionally honest and heart-warming. Your protagonist should face a situation that almost everyone has experienced and can relate to, like rebuilding life after a breakup or falling in love for the first time.

6. DO trust the intelligence of your reader. By leaving gaps for her (or him) to fill in they’ll get more out of your story.

7. DO use a high proportion of dialogue in your story but only if it moves the story along. Pacing is particularly important in short stories.

8. DO ensure the resolution happens quickly but is also satisfying and believable. Coincidence shouldn’t feature.

9. DO minimise adverbs and adjectives, and make strong verb choices.

10. DO consider your title carefully. Look for key words or phrases within the story to use.



Image courtesy of Pinterest
1. DON’T include lengthy descriptions of setting or characters.

2. DON’T head hop. A of point of view change is okay with 2 characters, but with more than that, head hopping will detract from the reader’s connection with the main characters.

Photo by MF


3. DON’T end with a lifetime commitment. It’s just not believable in a short romance.






4. DON’T attempt a complicated plot. Your story should have all the elements of a novel i.e. character arcs, conflict and resolution, but on a much smaller scale.

5. DON’T include distractions like subplots. Just stick to the central theme of your story.






If you’re looking for a short story contest to enter, RWA’s Little Gems is a great place to start. 2017’s 'theme' gem is Onyx. Why not give it a go?






Photo by MF
Love to Love seeing my crit partner Cassandra Samuels receive her award for winning the Ripping Start Contest from Michael Hauge at the RWA Conference in Adelaide.

Photo by MF
Love to Laugh at some of the ridiculous places I've discovered a red feather from the boa given out at the Harlequin Author party.

Love to Learn more about short-story writing. Check out Kurt Vonnegut 's 8 tips for writing a short story.
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20 comments:

  1. Unknown5 September 2016 at 09:06

    Hi, Marilyn!

    First...I loooove Kurt Vonegut. I'll definitely look up his 8 tips.

    Second...this is a great summary for short story writing. Thank you.

    Third...how do you handle time gaps in a short story and are they acceptable spots to change POV?

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth5 September 2016 at 11:49

      Thanks, Dee! As I mentioned above, the time frame of a short story should be short. If you have a change of scene and time you can set it up at the end of the previous scene (e.g. 'They agreed to meet for lunch a week later.') or at the beginning of the new scene ('Why haven't you replied to any of my emails for the last week?' or 'She glanced at her watch.') Basically, time gaps can be handled the same way as in longer stories as long as the time frame for the story itself doesn't extend for too long. Re. POV changes, I try to keep to one POV character in my short stories, but if I have two then I have up to three POV changes in the story. I try to make these where the two characters have different reactions to, or thoughts on, a particular situation so that we see both sides (e.g. 'It was so clear now. Sue did still love him! (line break) Sue glanced at her lover. Falling out of love with him had happened a long time ago. The difficult part was telling him.')
      I hope that's answered your questions. :)

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    2. Unknown5 September 2016 at 14:45

      Yep, totally answered my question. Thank you!

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    3. Marilyn Forsyth5 September 2016 at 15:32

      My pleasure!

      Delete
  2. Cassandra Samuels5 September 2016 at 13:27

    What a wonderful list of Do's and Don'ts Marilyn. Thank you so much. I must admit I am not good at short and there definitely is an art to it. Love the picture of me with Michael. It's the first one I've seen, so thank you.

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth5 September 2016 at 15:20

      Thanks Cassandra! I agree, there is an art to it, but it's learnable (if there is such a word :)) with practice. So glad you like the photo. I'll send it to you.

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  3. Anonymous5 September 2016 at 15:11

    I note than some of your published short stories have a 'twist' at the end that amazingly you cannot see coming given the length of the story. Is this something that is more your style or is it relatively common? I think it provides an unexpected satisfaction for the reader (me) who couldn't necessarily see how this could end well.

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth5 September 2016 at 15:31

      Hi! Thanks so much for dropping by. I LOVE writing stories with a twist and, like you, I get such a buzz when I read stories where I didn't see the ending coming. I work hard to think of twists, playing 'what if...?' and reading other people's stories for inspiration, so I guess it's a part of my writing voice.

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  4. Sharon Bryant5 September 2016 at 19:11

    Thank you for such an informative short romance checklist, Marilyn. I know I'll find it invaluable next time a try writing a short story.

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  5. Enisa5 September 2016 at 20:23

    Thanks for the checklist, Marilyn. Great advice to keep in mind when writing short stories.

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth6 September 2016 at 14:20

      The suggestions are based on my experience, comparing stories that sold with those that didn't. Hopefully they're good advice!

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  6. Malvina5 September 2016 at 21:49

    I love reading short stories! Especially romantic ones. Your checklist above is wonderful, Marilyn, Thankyou. I agree that keeping it simple often gives bigger impact. And the fewer characters is sometimes also more impactful.

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth6 September 2016 at 14:23

      Hi Malvina! A woman after my own heart. Short romances are great to indulge in over a quick cuppa, aren't they? Or on a short train ride.

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  7. Unknown6 September 2016 at 12:23

    Hi Marilyn, thanks for your post. I've never written a short romance, or short story for that matter so thanks for the tips.

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    1. Marilyn Forsyth6 September 2016 at 14:34

      I found that writing short is a whole other world to writing a full-length novel, Karen, but one thing it did teach me was to be economical with my words.

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  8. Jess8 September 2016 at 10:32

    Hi Marilyn, thanks for the great article! In between writing my full length novel, I'm writing short stories. Can I ask where is the best place sell them? I can't find anything besides competions. I'm entering current short story in a contest next week.

    Thanks
    Jess

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  9. Marilyn Forsyth9 September 2016 at 07:41

    Hi Jess! So glad you found the post helpful. The only Australian magazines I'm aware of that publish short stories are That's Life and Yours, so you could try contacting them. The other route you could try is self-publishing. I haven't gone down that road but I've heard that short stories and short story anthologies (5 or more stories) sell quite well. Good luck with the contest!

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  10. Jess12 September 2016 at 11:17

    Thanks Marilyn!

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